


The Peiste Pits

by DxTURA



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 15:10:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17082665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DxTURA/pseuds/DxTURA
Summary: A small FFXIV drabble that speaks about Datura’s past a little bit. Prompt inside.Originally posted 4/14/17.





	The Peiste Pits

**Prompt** : [8:33 PM] Zurine: April’s writing prompt, Which anyone can answer (and may be pressured to by tiny raptors) is as follows: “Like a bee sting, a memory pops up with a sharp pain. What are you remembering, and why now?”

~*~*~*~

When Datura took on the case of investigating the high aetherial levels of The Sepulchre, she expected the job to be simple. Broken Water was an area she could map out in the back of her head, and undead armies were nothing ever since Milleuda the Slitter disappeared. All she had to do was set down aetherometers, herd the sources into the area, and absorb it with the machine and a few Arcanist tricks. She could then report the data, take the reward, and all would be peaceful!

At least, that’s what she _thought_. What the Lalafell _didn’t_ expect was the sources of the aetherpools to be an enthralled group of Peiste – likely a trick that Amal’jaa were cooking up nearby.

There were at least five or six of them, its leader at least six or eight fulms taller than his pack. Each beast looked at Datura with their serpentine maws open and beady, black eyes. When she crouched to the ground they crouched with her, and their sharp nails sank into the hot sands. Their tails cracked like whips, their hisses grew louder, and their bodies moved from the side to side. She knew they were hungry, but she wasn’t going to let them have her.

Though when the Lalafell was to move, she found her body firmly planted against the ground. She found her fingers trembling and having a hard time keeping her body up, and chills ran across her back as she heard their breathing coming closer. The shuffles in the sand were now taken over by the loud, quickening pulses of her heart. There was nothing she could do; her body simply would not listen.

It was when the Peiste king fully opened his mouth that saw the reason to her stupefaction.

The world warped to a dark, damp area where she recalled her entrapment in a Peiste pit with a 10 fulm tall beast. Every way out was either locked or barricaded by wood and rocks, and her wrists were snared to her feet with tight, metallic chains. Any clumsy tug, and she would find herself face-first against the floor. She hastily tugged at the chains on her feet, and each one elicited a strained cry from the small girl.

It was when she fell on her back that the Peiste advanced forward, and she panicked at the sight of it.

“I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die…” She wheezed, backpaddling against the floor until her back hit one of the jagged rocks. “Please don’t let me die, Master…”

But her ‘Master,’ a tall Elezen in question, simply sat on the tallest rock he could find and watched. His gold eyes narrowed as he shook his head.

“First rule of survival, Dura,” He spat venom as he spoke, “You learn to live, or you accept your death.”

He snapped his fingers, and the Peiste went for her; with her eyes shut tight the Lalafell heard nothing more than her strained screams, jingles (then clanks), and the sound of squishing ring in the back of her head. She couldn’t feel whether her body was moving or not, nor could she tell how much time had passed as the sounds continued to echo.

All she knew is once her eyes opened again, the darkened scene that she knew so well returned to the bright and sunny Thanalan she recalled wandering through. The once aggressive clan was now mangled and lifeless, and all she saw was blood trickle from her hands.

She fell to her knees and took the moment to recoup, caring less about the blood smearing her face and more about the chance of an adventurer seeing her cry while passing by.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I'm actually not sure how to rate this one because it's not TERRIBLY graphic, but I know some of my friends can be kind of squeamish.


End file.
